December 27, 2006

• My [Overdue] Christmas Gift to You: A Grammar Lesson

  I.E. and E.G.–what do they mean?

  We’ve all seen them being used in some context or another—but most of us don’t know exactly what the abbreviations actually stand for. However, our lack of knowledge in the department of grammatical shortcuts does not prevent us from using these terms in our own writings–we just assume that we’re using them correctly based on how we’ve seen others use them in the past.

  Right?

  I.E. and E.G. are usually seen in parenthesis to denote lists or examples of whatever the subject of the sentence is referring to. They seem to have the same purposes, and thus we’ve probably used them interchangeably…an innocent mistake…

  …that you should stop right now!

  (Sorry, I didn’t have a better transitional phrase.)

  Unfortunately, I.E. and E.G. are two separate tools with very different purposes–meaning, you’re not helping yourself if you’re using them interchangeably. In fact, if you’re like me–and you know what I.E. and E.G. stand for–you get a good laugh out of seeing them used incorrectly (albeit, a nerdy laugh…but a laugh nonetheless.) And hopefully, My [Overdue] Christmas Gift to You will help you all find more amusement in your daily lives—especially when you read newspapers, magazines, or any other form of literature that uses an over-paid editor.

  I.E. and E.G. are actually Latin words. I guess the best way to explain how to correctly use them is to define them:

  I.E. is the abbreviation of the Latin phrase, id est–which means “in other words.” Thus, you would use I.E. as an indication that you are clarifying a particular term.

  I spent my entire morning playing a video game, i.e. Final Fantasy XII.

  I was playing a video game, i.e. Final Fantasy XII, all morning.

  As you can see, the I.E. was used to specify the video game that I spent my morning playing–and which I have spent all my other mornings, afternoons, and evenings playing as well (because it’s awesome.) But I digress…

  I haven’t seen I.E. used a whole lot–and you might agree that it’s not as common as E.G.–which is why I think people have a tendency to use it incorrectly because there aren’t a whole lot of examples of how to use it properly. Not that I blame people for choosing to ignore I.E.–it’s actually kind of a waste of time because you’re essentially writing the subject matter twice.

  Moving on…

  E.G. is the abbreviation of the Latin phrase, exempli gratia–which is our “for example.” I think this is the shortcut we are most familiar with—and chances are you’re using it correctly unless you’re the type who likes to waste time (see above). E.G. is used to denote a few examples of the sentence’s subject matter–which is not the same as I.E. since I.E. is used to specify the actual subject matter; E.G. is for examples of what the subject matter could be.

  If I weren’t so lazy, I could be doing other things, e.g. watching television, napping, updating my Xanga.

  Turnip and Pepper enjoy sleeping in different spots. E.g., my stomach, my text books, and my desk chair are some of the places they like to nap on.

  Anyway, that’s my gift to you.

   

   

  • 8:52 pm
  • 2 Comments